Maybe I'll be a Teacher?

As part of our #teachermojo campaign, we caught up with secondary school pupil Alexandra Pieri studying English Literature, Art and Media Studies. She hopes to go on and study English Literature at university before potentially undertaking her teacher training to become an English teacher.

"Hello, my name is Alexandra and I am a sixth form student at Brockhill Park Performing Arts College. Having recently completed my AS levels I will be returning to school to complete my final year of A levels. 

Joining sixth form a year ago felt scary but exciting as I was unsure whether sixth form was the right place for me. At the beginning of year 12 I found everything quite overwhelming. The jump from GCSE to A level was major. I found it difficult at first to get used to the work load and the realisation that my attainment over the next two years could affect my future career choices. 

As the year progressed however, I begun to enjoy my subjects more and became more adjusted to the work. With the right support I started to think about the future and what I wanted it to look like...

Over the course of year 12 I became very passionate about English literature; which is my favourite subject. It has helped me improve my writing skills immensely and made me appreciate reading novels, but most of all it has definitely made me consider taking English Literature further. 

I recently went to visit a couple of universities. The university that really stood out for me was the University of Roehampton: the course, the environment and location really appealed to me and I hope to achieve the grades required to study at the university I have fallen in love with.

I consider English literature a transferable degree that can lead me down many different career paths. One career path being teaching. I already have a small amount of teaching experience. Every Saturday I help at Folkestone Greek School and teach young children between the ages of 4-8 basic Greek. Although I only spend a couple hours a week helping these young children, I find it very enjoyable and interesting. This isn't the subject I aspire to teach; but this job has given me valuable experience and vision into what it would be like to #getintoteaching. 

As well as helping out at my local Greek school, I have also helped students in the younger years at my school with GCSE English coursework and helped with exam work. I really enjoyed volunteering because as well as helping others, it inspired me to want to be an English teacher at secondary school level.

Another career path English literature could lead to me to is journalism. I have gained experience in the journalism industry by working at my local newspaper for a week and I found this very enjoyable. The experience enabled me to work alongside journalists, help interview people and give helpful writing tips. As well as watching editors and shadowing journalists, I was also given the opportunity to write my very own articles; both for the online platform and the newspaper. This really gave me as sense of triumph and firsthand experience of the publishing industry. 

From gaining work experience at places that offer different career paths, it has definitely given me a major insight into the careers i’m considering to pursue after completing a degree in English Literature.

When Kent-Teach approached me to be part of the #teachermojo campaign, I 100% wanted to be involved. Whether I decide to go into teaching or journalism one thing that remains true is the invaluable and inspiring support I have had from my inspiring teachers who over the years have opened my eyes to the possibilities and are getting me ready for my future beyond school!" 

Head to Twitter and join the #teachermojo conversation, tell us your story about why you want to get into teaching or why you love being a teacher!